NICE! Luc Tuymans to Visit Third Ward to Chat with Residents About His Menil Ad

When Glasstire posted the article about the “counter-billboard” to the “NICE” advertisement placed in Third Ward’s Dupree Park by Houston’s Menil Collection promoting its current exhibition of Luc Tuymans, it received a fair amount of traffic and prompted a few responses to a variety of issues raised. One of the readers must have been Luc Tuymans, considered by many to be “one of the most influential painters working today,” because it was announced today by The Menil Collection and Project Row Houses that Tuymans will participate in a conversation with the community on Wednesday, October 30, at 5:30 pm at Dupree Park (at Dowling Street between Francis and Stuart Streets).

One of the arguments posed by Phillip Alan Pyle II of Everything Records in the original press release was: “[W]hy did the Menil choose Dupree Park to advertise this exhibition? This is not to say that neighbors here have no interest in art, but the ad is vague, and does little to educate the community on who or what the ad is about.” When asked if the immediate community had been notified of this event, Project Row Houses responded that they have placed flyers in residents’ and neighbors’ mailboxes and posted it at various key locations in the neighborhood. Pyle, rumored to be responsible for the “NICEST” billboard (check out the original article for photo and description), will also be in attendance on Wednesday. This should be an interesting conversation between thoughtful artists and (hopefully) an interested community.